‘My wife has always been iconic’: Buzza and Anele talk love, family and legacy

(L to R) Bonelela James Mgudlwa, Anele Mdoda in Stars And Vows. Picture: Supplied, Netflix © 2026

Buzza’s admiration for his wife goes beyond her fashion choices. Having known Anele long before the cameras started following their relationship, he has watched her grow into her own, both personally and professionally.

Speaking to The Citizen in a recent interview, he described the change as an elevation, rather than a reinvention.

While audiences might tune in to see the wedding celebrations, the couple hopes they will also take away something more meaningful from the experience.

For someone whose professional life has largely unfolded in the public eye, Anele’s decision to keep parts of her wedding private was deliberate.

The couple tells us they had already celebrated their traditional wedding, but the absence of photographs and other details from their white wedding left many people wondering whether there was more to the story.

Anele recalled that her absence from the airwaves also raised eyebrows among listeners, who are accustomed to her being behind the microphone.

“The easiest way to know that something is up is for me to be off air because people know I don’t miss my radio show. So it was like, where is she?“

The couple eventually confirmed that the wedding had taken place, but kept other, more intimate details to themselves.

“It was small, it was private, and then we let it go. But people are going to enjoy it. It’s a beautiful ride.”

That ride is now being shared with Netflix audiences through Anele & Buzza: Stars and Vows, which follows the couple’s journey through the celebrations and family dynamics surrounding their marriage.

The wedding celebrations in Stellenbosch were designed to reflect the significance of the occasion, as well as the families coming together. Buzza describes the setting as royal, pointing to the natural beauty of the winelands, the mountains, greenery and the estate itself as important elements of the experience.

Anele said she wanted to create something that matched the significance of being welcomed into her husband’s family.

“It was absolutely royal. That’s what I wanted because I wanted something that was going to meet the same level of royalty that Buzza’s family is going to welcome us with. So, I didn’t want to let them down on the other end.”

Even the colour palette was carefully considered, with different shades of blue forming part of the aesthetic. Religion was equally important. Anele explains that her husband’s faith is central to the foundation of their home, making it important that their marriage ceremony took place in a church rather than simply at a wedding venue.

“We got married in a church with a bishop, and it was the bishop who is my family bishop who buried my mother.”

“It’s opulent, it’s royal, but it’s classy, it’s timeless. What you’re going to get in Stellenbosch is timeless.”

One of the more significant themes to emerge from the conversation is the importance both Anele and Buzza place on bringing people together.

Their relationship has been built on a long-standing friendship, with their social circles and families already familiar with one another. The wedding celebrations therefore became an extension of relationships that existed long before the cameras arrived.

The 947 Breakfast host says both come from families that enjoy gathering, even if the circumstances are not always particularly celebratory.

She also credits Buzza’s older sister, whom she describes as the family’s matriarch, for helping create the sense of togetherness through carefully planned themes, colour schemes and family traditions.

“Most of the songs, the chants that they sing, she’s come up with them and then has taught the family. She’s got like this WhatsApp group where she sends them. And then when they do this, we’re going to sing this.”

For Anele, the gatherings are about more than simply having a good time. They are an opportunity to establish traditions that will keep both families connected for generations.

“Our marriage means that once a year or twice a year, but at the very least once a year, we want both families together under the umbrella of Ngubengcuka, calling the family to say come.”

She likens the idea to the way the Zulu kingdom maintains its sense of community through regular gatherings and events.

“That’s how you keep people together. That’s how we constantly realign, regardless of whether we are in a fight or not. We’re not talking, but we’re going to get together, and we’re going to make this thing happen.”

Her husband shares a similar sentiment, explaining that these occasions can offer people a welcome break from the difficulties of everyday life.

He believes that bringing families together gives everyone an opportunity to contribute, feel included and, for a moment, shift their attention away from their personal struggles.

“For a moment, I get to be the one that chooses outfits for the family, colour, dress, design,” he says, describing how someone who might ordinarily be dealing with challenges at work or in their personal life can take on a different role within the family.

Being in the public eye for more than two decades has meant that the broadcaster is no stranger to online commentary, criticism and speculation. However, she says her relationship has changed the way she responds to what people say about her. She credits the love and security she experiences at home with helping her develop a different perspective on public opinion.

Being loved correctly and being loved loudly and being loved softly the way Buzza loves me. Most things now don’t bother me.

Anele admits that she previously felt compelled to challenge people’s perceptions of her, wanting to correct the record whenever she felt misunderstood.

“I used to be quite militant, and I wanted to fight how you see me, how you view me. Being able to go home to this family that Buzza has put together for me, it made me realise that those are the only people I’m accountable to. And those are the only people I ever have to explain myself to.”

She also points out the difference between what people say online and how they behave when confronted in person.

“Anyone who’s ever said anything untoward to me, which is plenty because I’ve been doing this for 25 years. Dude, I’ve never met a hater in real life.”

Ultimately, she says, the people who matter most are those she returns home to, and those are the people who deserve her best.

Marriage has also brought a new dimension to the star’s understanding of family, particularly when it comes to her responsibilities within Buzza’s royal family. While she has always been confident in her own identity, she says becoming a wife has made her more conscious of how she represents her marital home, especially during important family and cultural occasions.

She recalls preparing for a visit to the Zulu kingdom for the re-dance, where she realised that being married into the family meant approaching certain situations differently.

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Before attending, she consulted Buzza’s aunts and uncles about what she should wear and how she should conduct herself.

“I need to consult Buzza’s family with a lot of things that happen. And that’s how I conduct myself now. Now, it’s my marital home that I’m embarrassing if I run around shooting from the hip, and that’s not going to happen.”

It is a learning curve that she appears to embrace, acknowledging that marriage has expanded her sense of responsibility and the family she represents.

For Buzza, however, the woman he married has not needed a complete makeover to step into this new chapter. He still sees the same iconic Anele, now with an extended support system and a different perspective on the world around her.

And perhaps that is what the couple hopes audiences will see through Stars and Vows: not simply a lavish wedding, but two people bringing their histories, families, beliefs and personalities together to build something that will outlast the celebrations.

‘Anele & Buzza: Stars and Vows’ is streaming on Netflix from Friday, 13 November.

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